BREAN comes out as top dog with TripAdvisor reviewers, as it is ranked the best destination in Somerset for dog-friendly beaches, pubs and cafes.

Dog-friendly holiday provider Canine Cottages has crunched the TripAdvisor data, using the percentage of reviews which suggested a place was dog-friendly, to come up with three lists of places for pet lovers and their pooches to visit.

Brean Sands came out as the most dog-friendly beach in Somerset, with Dunster Beach ranked second and Berrow Beach third.

Sand Bay and Uphill Slipway Beach, both in Weston-super-Mare, rounded out the top five.

Away from the coastline, the best dog-friendly place to visit for a day out - according to the data analysis - is Ham Hill Country Park, in Stoke sub Hamdon.

Uphill Local Nature Reserve (Weston-super-Mare), Coates English Willow Centre (Taunton), Forde Abbey & Gardens (Chard) and Wellington Monument also rank highly in that category.

The third list is of the top dog-friendly places to eat across Somerset.

The Brean Down Inn was praised by 35 per cent of visitors for its dog-friendliness, while the top cafe - Ninesprings Cafe, Yeovil - had similar feedback from 31 per cent of its visitors.

Also making it into the top 10 for places to eat and drink were Stones Cafe and Bar (Weston-super-Mare), The Coffee Corner Company (Burnham-on-Sea), The Dolphin (Weston), The Ocean Bar (Burnham), Apple Tree Tea Rooms (Minehead), The Anchor Inn (Weston), Coaster Coffee (Minehead) and The Ship Inn (Porlock).

Canine Cottages have also released a 'Dog-Friendly Index', a tool allowing dog owners to find these and other places recommended by TripAdvisor reviewers.

Each place that has been featured has also been given a 'paw rating' out of five, with only places rated three paws or higher featuring in the tool.

That index can be found at www.caninecottages.co.uk/dog-friendly-index.